Fallen Angel
by gemjam
Summary: Jack and Boone take a vacation, and run into an old friend. Takes place after 'Ever After'.
1. Chapter 1

Sun, sea and sex. Just what the doctor ordered. So to speak.

Much as Jack loved his new abode, even after three months it was still very much a work in progress, and he had to admit that it was nice to be somewhere that wasn't covered it dust what seemed like all of the time. So this was perfect. Tangled up with Boone in bed. Light cotton sheets just about covering them. Balcony door slightly open to let a breeze flow lazily through the room.

But Jack couldn't sleep. He hadn't had this problem in a long time, certainly not since they moved into their new house. But tonight there was just something bothering him, something he couldn't quite place his finger on. It was that strange niggling feeling that he was supposed to be somewhere. Where he could possibly belong at this second in time but right here with Boone basking in the afterglow was beyond him but the feeling wasn't going away.

He found his way from out of Boone's limbs without waking him and pulled on some clothes, heading out for a walk. Maybe some fresh air would clear this restless feeling out of his head. But he ended up in the hotel bar somehow, ordering a soda. He would have had a stronger drink but his head was still post-sex messy and that would probably send him over the edge into sleepy land. Which actually didn't sound like such a bad idea. But he paid for his soda and went to sit down in the corner of the almost empty bar. There were a few couples scattered about but it seemed to be a quiet night.

Then he saw a tidy blonde enter, dressed in a pretty flowing sun dress, and he couldn't look away as she made her way over to the bar and ordered a drink. As she settled down he noticed that she kept flicking glazes around the room. She wasn't being erratic, it was subtle, but Jack noticed that she was definitely keeping an eye out for something. Not as though she were meeting someone but as if she expected something to happen, something inevitable. She wasn't scared of it, she just wanted a little warning. And as she flicked a look towards his corner of the bar he saw her face.

Kate.

Blonde and girly and looking considerably better than the last time Jack saw her but it was definitely Kate. He wondered what to do. But he didn't wonder for long as he found himself walking up to her.

"Miss Austin," Jack said, coming up behind her.

She turned around sharply to face him, looking as though she was ready to punch him in the jaw. Then her expression melted and she looked shocked but happy. "Jack?" she asked, though there was clearly no doubt. Then suddenly she threw her arms around his neck. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Jack put his hands on her waist. "Boone and I are taking a little time out from the city," he explained. They pulled away from each other and both sat down at the bar. "And what brings you to Hawaii?"

Kate gave him a look. As if someone on the run would be taking a vacation, you end up where you end up on any given day. Jack smiled at her a little.

"Right, sorry," he said. "Nice dress by the way." He was being slightly sarcastic but, let's face it, Kate didn't wear dresses.

"Thank you," she replied, ignoring his tone.

"And your hair," he continued. "Never saw you as a blonde."

"That's kinda the point," she admitted. "I mean, if you've maybe seen Kate Austin in the newspaper and you're keeping half an eye out for her, you're gonna skip right over the girly blonde at the bar, right?"

She had a point. But it made Jack a little sad at how good she was at this. Not that she looked particularly sad herself, but he knew what it was like to be stuck in a rut that you can't even see until you get out the other side and look back at it and realise just what a big hole it was. Kate's whole life was empty but Kate didn't really know that because Kate never knew anything else. Except that she did. On the island. Less than six months ago. Now Jack felt even worse for her.

"So, anyway, enough about me. Tell me about you and Boone. What's going on with you guys?" Kate asked, bringing Jack out of his thoughts.

"Me and Boone? We're great. We're both doing great," Jack stated. "I'm back at the hospital."

"Of course," Kate interjected with a smile.

"Boone's doing up our house which, well, really needs doing up," Jack continued.

"He's doing it on his own?" Kate asked.

"Yeah, pretty much," Jack replied. "He's doing a really good job, the place is really coming together. It's gonna be fantastic when it's done."

"So, you got the job, you got the house, you got the boyfriend," Kate summarised. "Sounds like you're doing okay for yourself."

"Yeah, I'm doing good," Jack nodded. "Which makes a nice change."

Kate nodded her head a little in return but she seemed kind of sombre.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Jack apologised, cringing a little.

Kate smiled. "Don't be stupid," she scolded him. "I wanna hear about you guys. I don't get updates as often as I'd like and the ones that I do get don't go into great detail."

"So what do you wanna know?" Jack asked.

"I don't know, just tell me what you guys have been up to. Tell me about your house. Tell me anything," Kate directed.

Jack thought. He sucked at summaries. He could probably gush about Boone for about two hours but that wouldn't really help her with the gossip quota. And then he realised what she'd just said to him. "You get updates?" he asked, turning to face her.

She looked a little sheepish, realising her mistake. "What?" she asked innocently. A very good innocent impersonation, Jack noted. Probably well rehearsed.

"You just said you don't get updates often," Jack clarified. "That means you do get updates."

"Not really," she replied, not looking him in the eye. "I meant from newspapers and stuff."

"Four months, Kate," Jack stated. "We're not in the papers anymore."

She gave him a look that pretty much admitted she'd been caught out.

"So who is it?" Jack asked.

"Who's what?" she asked back, trying not to smirk. She was clearly game to draw this out as long as she could.

Jack gave her a look. "Who are you in contact with? Who gives you updates?" He was trying to sound patient but he probably wasn't pulling it off.

Kate looked down. She didn't look upset or annoyed, the smirk was still playing on her face. In fact, she looked like a little kid who had just eaten a bunch of candy before dinnertime. Jack tried to wait it out but she was good at this.

"Oh, come on," Jack blurted out.

This made Kate break into a full smile. Jack guessed she'd won the game. She looked back up at him. "Promise not to tell?"

"Your secret's safe with me," he assured her.

She pulled a slight face and then quietly replied, "Sawyer."

Jack smirked. "Sawyer?" he asked. "Of all the people on that island you chose to trust Sawyer?"

"Look, he gets this stuff. He gets the criminal code, the whole hush-hush thing. He's lived this life a little himself," Kate replied. "So he's not the most trustworthy guy in general terms, he's not gonna run to the FBI and he's not gonna be intimidated into telling anyone anything about me."

She had a point, Jack reflected. Sawyer was probably well trained in keeping secrets of this nature. Kate took a sip of her drink and Jack thought how young she looked, how innocent. And it wasn't just in her hair and clothes, it was in her face too. All that time on the island and he never could get his head around what she could possibly have done wrong.

She looked up at him. "What?" she asked. He shook his head and looked away. Kate rolled her eyes. "Tell me."

"I was just wondering what you were possibly running from that could be that bad," Jack stated, not quite looking at her. "I knew you for over two years and I could never work it out. I could never come close."

Kate raised her eyebrows. "Right, like you don't know."

He looked at her, clueless, and shrugged.

"Are you kidding me?" she asked.

Jack shook his head. "I never found out," he replied.

"But, wait, it was in every newspaper going, it was on the news, you couldn't miss it," Kate went on.

"I didn't read it. I turned the channel," Jack stated matter-of-factly.

Kate looked at him, intrigued. "Why?"

"I didn't want to find out that way," he explained. "When I find out I want it to be from you."

She looked down, a slight shy smile on her lips. "I'm not gonna say it," she stated.

"I know," Jack replied. "Doesn't stop me wondering. But I only want to know if you want to tell me."

She looked up at him and shook her head.

"Didn't think so," he responded. "So, how long are you sticking around for?" he asked. Kate looked at him, clearly wary. Jack couldn't help but laugh. He leaned in and whispered conspiratorially, "I'm not gonna phone the FBI."

Kate smiled and leaned in whispering, "I know."

Jack smiled and leaned back to his original position. Kate followed suit.

"Okay then, let me rephrase that," Jack tried. "You gonna be around tomorrow evening to have dinner with me and Boone?"

Kate smiled at him. "I think I maybe might," she replied.

"Then I'll see you in the bar at seven," Jack responded. "Now, if you'll excuse me, there's a certain young man who's probably starting to wonder where I got to," he said as he stood up. "Not that he'll be awake," he added with a smile. "I'll see you tomorrow, Kate."

"Looking forward to it," she replied, turning back to her drink. 


	2. Chapter 2

Jack looked sweet when he was asleep. He looked pretty good when he was awake too but when he was asleep he wasn't trying to help people or work things out or use the new tin opener that was apparently beyond him. He seemed so much more peaceful. He had a tendency to take on responsibilities that weren't his and then look all forlorn over it. Which didn't really make a whole lot of sense to Boone.

And then he realised that if he woke up and someone was staring at him he would probably be quite freaked out, even if it was Jack. So he tried to stop looking at Jack. He picked up his book and started reading but he couldn't concentrate because he knew that Jack was laying next to him, looking all sweet. He put the book down and got out of bed.

He went out onto the balcony and looked over the beach. It reminded him of being on the island. Except, not really, because that general sense of foreboding was missing. Even on the good days on the island, there was no such thing as relaxation. Right now, he couldn't be happier.

"Guess who I ran into last night?"

He turned around to see Jack stood behind him.

"Hi," he said. "I thought you were asleep."

"I was," Jack replied. "I woke up."

Boone smiled at him. Made sense.

"So, guess who I ran into last night?" he asked again.

Boone shrugged. "Who?"

Jack smiled a little. "Kate."

Boone thought about it. "Kate? Kate Kate? Island Kate?" That would be too weird to comprehend.

"The one and only," Jack replied. "Strange, huh?"

"Yeah," Boone replied a little distantly. What were the chances of running into someone who was on the run? Well, he guessed they got around a lot, the key word there was 'run'. Then another thought struck Boone. "Wait, last night?" Jack nodded. "We stayed in last night."

"I went down to the bar for a bit," Jack explained.

"When?"

"When you were asleep."

"Why?" Boone asked. Not exactly what he wanted to hear. He wondered if Jack skipped out a lot while he was sleeping.

"I couldn't sleep so I went for a walk," Jack replied offhandedly.

"You couldn't sleep?" Boone asked, a little concerned. "But you always sleep. Especially after that."

"Nothing to do with you, Boone. Or that," Jack assured him. "Anyway, I told her we'd have dinner with her tonight. That's cool, right?"

"Yeah, sure," Boone replied. "Anyway, I was just heading into the shower."

"What a coincidence, so was I," Jack said with a smile.

"Yeah, well I'm going first," Boone said, heading back inside.

"Didn't your mother ever teach you to share?" Jack asked suggestively, following close behind.

Boone turned to face him and gave him a look.

"Don't look at me like that when I'm offering you sex or I might not bother next time," Jack said as he walked past Boone into the bathroom. "You coming?" he called back as he turned the shower on.

God Jack could be arrogant and self assured. Like Boone was just going to follow him like some little puppy dog. Boone could wait. Boone could make Jack come to him. But then Jack threw his T-shirt out of the room and Boone got images and naked flesh in his head. He smiled to himself and went into the bathroom.

"I get to set the temperature."

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Kate looked good, if not rather different. Boone wasn't sure the blonde hair entirely suited her, and the girly clothes were quite out of character, but she definitely had the figure for them. But she looked good in herself too. She looked healthy. Which Boone wasn't quite expecting. He knew she wasn't on a vacation and he didn't know what kind of life she'd been living but he didn't think it would be a hugely comfortable existence. But it was probably still more comfortable than living on the island from hell in the south pacific, he reasoned.

"So, I hear you're Mr. DIY now," Kate said, tucking into her starter.

"You could say that," Boone replied. "It's not really a big deal."

"It is a big deal," Jack told Kate. "He lives this stuff. He's got a bunch of books. And he watches the Home and Leisure network on an evening. Personally, when I get done playing with people's spinal cords, the last thing I want to do is watch a surgery programme," Jack went on. "But maybe that's just me."

Kate smiled. "Sounds like the two of you have got a nice little set up there," she observed.

"The house is amazing, you should see it," Jack said.

"Well, if I'm ever in town I might just look you guys up," Kate replied.

"Do you have a plan?" Boone asked her. "Not that you'd tell us if you did but do have some kind of idea where you're heading next? Where you're gonna be next week?"

Kate shrugged. "Not really," she admitted. "I try not to think about it too much. The more spontaneous I am the better. They can't second guess me when I don't know where I'm going myself."

"Yeah, makes sense," Boone replied. "Don't you ever get a little homesick though?"

"Boone," Jack warned, a little too paternal for Boone's liking.

"Jack, it's okay," Kate said. "You guys can ask me anything you want. I might not answer but you can ask away."

Boone wasn't sure if he should pursue this line of questioning though. Kate didn't really have a home to feel homesick for by the sounds of it. She was pretty guarded about her former life when they were on the island but she made it sound as if there was nothing for her to go back to. And not just because she was a fugitive. The way Kate told her vague with gaping holes story, she had nothing to go back to whether that marshal was after her or not. So the question really was could someone feel homesick for something they never had?

He looked up and realised Kate was looking at him expectantly. "I don't have a question," he said.

Kate smiled at him. "You look like you have a question."

Boone shook his head. "Nope."

Kate shrugged a little. "Okay."

Then Boone wondered if she wanted him to ask her. Probably not, he reasoned. Kate wasn't the kind of person that invited people to analyse her. At all. In fact she'd much rather people let her be a blank slate and do her thing than see her as a person with a past. But now that they were off the island maybe things were a little different. For all they knew they might never see each other again so maybe Kate wasn't so worried about letting people in. No, that didn't really sound like Kate.

"So, your house, how's that going?" Kate asked, sounding suspiciously like she was grasping for conversation.

"It's going okay," Boone replied. "I'm still enjoying which is nice. And it's all starting to come together. Don't get me wrong, it needs a hell of a lot more work, but it's getting there."

"Cool," she replied. "Make a house a home, right?"

"That's the plan," Boone agreed.

"So you guys in touch with anyone else from the island?"

"Shannon and Sayid, obviously," Boone replied. "Other than that, not so much."

"Oh, how are they?" Kate asked, sounding excited. "Shannon must of have the baby by now, right?"

"Yeah, little girl, Zara," Boone replied. "She'll be four weeks on Friday."

"So how are they coping with it all?"

"Shannon's pulling her hair out a little," Boone stated. "But she's loving it really. And Sayid's as calm as ever so together their doing fine."

"Good for them," Kate smiled.

There was a silence. Small talk was hard when it could only go one way. Boone had a million questions he wanted to ask Kate but he had a feeling she wasn't going to answer any of them. He glanced over at Jack who was looking at Kate, apparently considering something. Kate looked back at him and gave him a little smile. Apparently they were communicating in some secret language right in front of Boone. Not that Boone cared.

"So, have you seen the new series of Survivor?" Jack asked her.

Kate laughed a little. "No, that one passed me by," she replied.

"You're missing a treat," Jack told her, mock seriously.

Jack didn't watch Survivor. Jack hated stuff like that. But from the looks they were giving each other it seemed to be some kind of in-joke. Some kind of 'we run the island and we're in charge of everything and get to sleep in real beds in the hatch whenever we want' kind of in-joke. Not that Boone was bitter. Well, he wasn't really. Not all that much. And Jack did let him share his bunk so he didn't really have grounds to complain.

"Have you caught any of the fall line-up?" Jack continued.

"No, haven't had much time for prime time TV, I gotta say," she smiled.

"You wanna hole yourself up somewhere and watch some Fox," he went on. And on and on and on. Boone guessed crap TV was something of a topic for them on the island. Bit of a stupid topic if you asked him. But apparently no one was asking him.

And so they chatted about nothing all night, but that was their only option really. There was only so much Jack and Boone could tell her about their lives and there was nothing Kate felt safe telling them about hers. So they small talked. And it was actually kind of nice. It reminded Boone of the island a little, when they had nothing to talk about so they had to make conversation out of the most mundane of things. No back-stories and no futures, that was the deal on the island. Everything was in the present, and anything else you didn't ask about.

"Well, it's getting late, I think it's probably time I turned in for the night," Kate said, finishing off her drink.

"I know you're not gonna tell me how long you're staying for," Jack began.

"Yeah, cos I don't know," Kate replied.

"But," Jack continued. "If you get lonely we're in room 1412."

Kate smiled an almost smile. "I'll bear that in mind," she said simply. "Goodnight."

When they got back up to the room, Boone sat on the bed and felt a little sad.

"She's not gonna come say 'hi' if she feels lonely, is she?"

Jack looked up from what he was doing. "No. I don't think she will."

Boone nodded a little. Kate was a good person and bad things shouldn't happen to good people. But then Kate did a bad thing so maybe bad things should happen to her. Maybe she brought it upon herself. But Boone knew he couldn't have this discussion with Jack because Jack didn't know about Kate and her dad and that whole chapter of her life. And he didn't want to know. Not from Boone anyway.

"She'll be okay, don't worry about her," Jack said.

"Hey, I know," Boone replied. "If anyone's gonna be okay it's Kate."

Jack smiled a little. "Come on, let's go bed."

"Sounds like a plan." 


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's note: Well this concludes my little Kate fic. Just wanted to do something kinda fluffy before I move onto what I have planned for Boone and Jack next, which I think is gonna take up more of my time.**

Jack and Boone seemed happy. And Kate was happy for them. She really, really was. And she wasn't even kidding herself for once. Which made what she was about to do so much harder. She'd made the mistake of allowing herself connections and that was something she couldn't afford. Moving from place to place was bad enough without having to feel like you're letting other people down as well as yourself.

But it was time to go. And it wasn't because of Jack and Boone. She'd been there a few days and the barman downstairs had started to recognise her. And if he recognised her when she went into the bar, there was every chance he'd recognise her if her face were on the news. So she had to go. And she knew from experience that night was the best time to travel.

But she still felt bad about leaving Jack and Boone. She was fairly sure they'd expect it but that wasn't the point. She didn't want to do it. But she didn't do goodbyes. She'd never said goodbye to anyone, not really. Even after the island she never got to say goodbye to anyone. She was separated and put in a private room in the hospital under 24 hour watch. But the FBI weren't as smart as they thought they were if they supposed she couldn't get safely out of a second story window without assistance. So she didn't say goodbye. And she wasn't saying it now.

She finished packing her few possessions and lifted the bag onto the bed. She went over to the desk to pick up her room key and saw the complementary hotel stationary sitting there. A note? Was that saying goodbye? You can't say goodbye in a note, by the time the person reads it your gone so surely that doesn't count. She sat down and picked up the pen.

_Dear Jack and Boone_

_I just wanted to thank you for such a nice evening, it's been a while since I've had any real company. You both seem to be doing great which is really good to know. I like thinking of the two of you all happy in that wreck of a house you told me about. Good luck with the fixing-up, Boone._

_Anyway, bottom line, it's time for me to take to the road again. I felt like I owed it to you guys to not just disappear into the night though, I wanted to give you a bit of warning this time that you were never going to see me again. Not unless I'm on the 6 o'clock news anyway. And Jack, read the papers, there's no reason not to. If you're waiting on me you'll be waiting a long time. You don't owe me anything._

_Just as a closing note, yes, Boone, I do have a place I feel homesick for. There was once a place that I belonged and a place that I long for. But it didn't last as long as I'd like and it wouldn't have been much fun there on my own._

_If our paths don't cross again then just know that I'm happy for you guys and last night broke up the monotony nicely..._

_Kate xx_

Standing outside room 1412, she looked down at the neatly folded letter in her hand. She could feel her heart pounding inside her chest and she couldn't quite work out why. Leaving a note wasn't so scary. By the time they read it she'd be long gone and it's not like she'd ever have to face them again. All she had to do was slip it under the door and go on her way. No one would ever mention it to her again because there would be no time or place to mention it.

She unfolded the note and looked it over. Was she giving away too much?

Annoyed with herself, she ripped off the blank space at the bottom of the note and fished a pen out of her bag. On the scrap on paper now in her hand she wrote:

_Thanks for a great evening,  
K x_

She slipped it under the door and headed to the elevator. As she walked through the lobby she crumpled the note in her hand and tossed it into the trash. The desk clerk gave her a smile as she checked out.

"Have a safe journey, Miss Timmonds."

"Thank you."

She headed out of the building as she ran possible destinations through her head.


End file.
